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US President Donald Trump (L) and North Korea‘‘s leader Kim Jong Un (R) hold a bilateral meeting during the second US-North Korea summit at the Sofitel Legend Metropole hotel in Hanoi on February 28. (AFP)
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Trump says Kim wants all sanctions lifted in exchange for dismantling Yongbyon nuclear facilities
The joint signing ceremony that had been scheduled for Feb. 28 between North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and US President Donald Trump as part of their Hanoi summit was canceled around 2 pm (local time). Kim and Trump met earlier that morning at the Sofitel Legend Metropole Hanoi hotel at 9 am for a one-on-one meeting that was followed by an expanded meeting, the summit logging around 4 hours and 30 minutes in total before both leaders headed back to their accommodations. Kim and Trump were originally scheduled to have a working lunch on Feb. 28 at around 11:55 am. The White House beat reporters who were dispatched to Hanoi to cover the second North Korea-US summit were standing by in the Metropole Hanoi while the summit was in progress. At around 12:25 pm, reporters were suddenly alerted that the lunch had been delayed by 30 minutes. The delay soon became a complete change of plans. White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders then announced that the summit would be wrapping up in the next 30 to 45 minutes and that Trump would be returning to his accommodations at the JW Marriot. Sanders added that Trump’s press conference had been moved forward from 4 to 2 pm. "No agreement was reached at this time, but their respective teams look forward to meeting in the future," Sanders added. At around 1 pm, White House beat reporters started heading to the JW Marriot for Trump’s press conference. A little over 20 minutes later, Kim and Trump finished their summit and left the Metropole Hanoi. Trump returned to his hotel via private car at around 1:24 pm, at which point Kim also returned to his accommodations at the Melia hotel. Kim and Trump held a one-on-one meeting at 9 am that lasted over 30 minutes, after which they held an expanded meeting with their respective delegations. After that they were originally scheduled to eat lunch together and hold a joint signing ceremony, but both events were canceled. During his press conference, Trump said that he had a “really productive time” with Kim but it “wasn’t a thing to be signing anything.” "Sometimes you have to walk," Trump added. "This was just one of those times." Trump then revealed that the source of the summit’s sudden disruption was the issue of UN sanctions. "Basically they wanted the sanctions lifted in their entirety, and we couldn't do that," he said. Trump emphasized his desire to ultimately lift the sanctions, however, repeatedly emphasizing North Korea’s economic potential. “I want to take off the sanctions so badly, because that country has got so much potential to grow," he said. Regarding disarmament, Trump reaffirmed Kim’s commitment to denuclearize while indicating a disagreement in the method and timeline. "He [Kim Jong-un] wants to denuke, he just wants to do areas that are less important than what we want," he said. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo made a statement corroborating Trump’s account of the summit, saying that North Korea was “unprepared” to meet US demands. “But I’m still optimistic,” he added, emphasizing that the negotiations are going to take time and will continue in the “days and the weeks ahead.” By Noh Ji-won, staff reporter Please direct comments or questions to [english@hani.co.kr]
